Knock three times
by moldy999
Summary: Brittany Susan Pierce was twenty years old, she had lived in her current apartment for two and a half years and in that time had only left it once. Whoever said love at first sight.
1. Chapter 1

_Knock three times_

Only after the landlord had assured her of the absence of rats did she accept the small apartment as her own.

It was her first time away from her family and the time of Lima where she has grown up. It was her first step to the freedom she begged for.

The apartment she had chosen was part of a larger apartment complex with thirty or forty people living within it. As long as none of these people bothered her then it would be fine.

The building was five minutes' walk from her workplace; her room was moderately size and dimly lit as she imagined most if the other rooms to be. While it wasn't perfect, it was hers and that was a start.

For the most part the other tenants limited their communications with Santana to the occasional nod on the stairwell or a flirtatious comment from several of the well-meaning older tenants. She wasn't complaining or anything, you see Santana wasn't what you would call a people person.

During her high school years she hid behind a bitchy persona, bullying those weaker than herself in hopes of being shielded either with popularity or fear. If she were honest with herself, she hadn't changed all that much now.

While she had calmed down enough not to beat the crap out f any stranger who glanced her way for more than three seconds, she still had her walls up, unwilling to form close bonds with anyone around her.

It was just easier that way.

Santana was nineteen year old and living in New York with a job at a top advertising firm.

It had been one of her dreams for as long as she could remember, seconded only by singing, a career she had long since lost hope on.

Despite her natural beauty and talent, she had been unable to break into the industry, being refused recording contracts by several local firms and narrowly avoiding having assault charges filed against her after she swung a microphone stand at a man who had made sexual advances toward her person.

After several other similar experiences at more companies in the town, she had but given up on finding any job let alone in an industry she was in any way interested in. This was until she got the all that would change her life forever.

Troubletones advertising was one of the most we known and well respected firms in the industry, with clientele coming in from all over the world in hopes that they could cast their magic on their product or service.

They had picked up on Santana's work after a teacher at her high school had sent several pieces to them. Santana had shown an unnatural talent in many forms of creative media, skills rarely seen at such a high level in one so young without training.

As soon as they were certain that she was ready and that she had finished her high school education, they made the call, offering her a job with them immediately.

She was a genius and they needed her.

So that's how it had started.

That's how her life changed.

A phone call and she was off and out for bigger thugs that her small town could have ever made possible.

Full of hope she left her family and small group of friends and leapt into the big outside world and into adulthood.


	2. Chapter 2

_Knock three times_

It was Wednesday and early, that much she could tell.

Light streamed through the blind and onto her face. She squinted her eyes and rolled away from the blinding light, instantly regretting not closing the curtains the previous night.

Santana sighed, suddenly feeling very much awake. She didn't have to be in the office until two this afternoon for a short meeting finishing the deal with their most recent client.

He commercial had been a huge success, the companies' profits almost doubling overnight after the commercials first screening. This as almost entirely down to Santana but of course the agency would never give her the honour of actually telling the client that. They believed it to be Jesse's idea and she would risk her job and livelihood to tell them otherwise.

Pulling the covers over her head she shifted her body, trying to get comfortable. Despite her earlier state she fell into a deep slumber almost instantly.

She was awoken several hours later by the sound of letters falling through her door. Rolling over again, lowly rubbing the sleep from her eyes she squinted through her apartment. She slowly lifted her head and picked up her phone, 9:46 the screen flashed. Groaning, she pulled herself out of bed and slowly walked the small distance towards her door, sheets still trailing behind her.

Retrieving the letters from the floor, she flung them onto her small table before hobbling to the shower.

Thirty minutes later she returned to her small living and dining area, a towel wrapped tightly around her body and black hair falling straight down her back.

Picking up the stack of letters again she started to shuffle through them, pausing at each to glance at the post mark. Nothing from Lima, she wasn't surprised.

It wasn't until she reached the final letter that she noticed something decidedly wrong. On the front of every letter in place of her own name was 'Brittany S Pierce, room 42'. It must have been her neighbour's mail although until that moment Santana had been unaware that the room next to hers had been occupied. Muttering obscenities under her breath Santana dropped the letters down, turning to get dressed; she would have to have words with the mailman at a later date.

It took Santana less than five minutes to get ready, retrieve the letters and to exit her apartment keys in hand. Only as she started approaching the peeling door of room 42 did a slight panic set in.

Who was this woman?

What if they were a pycho?

What if they actually started talking to her in the halls?

Of course Santana was only being silly, she was just dropping off some letters for goodness sakes, and the woman might not even be home.

Shaking those thoughts out of her mind she knocked three times on the aging door.

She tapped her foot impatiently and clicked her tongue, waiting for the door to be opened. From inside of the apartment she could hear shuffling and a muffled band and yelp as though someone had tripped inside. Several moments passed then several minutes still with no answer.

Santana gritted her teeth and knocked a further three times again thinking that perhaps the inhabitant had not heard her previous knocks. She waited several minute more and hearing no more sounds from within, she sighed. She probably had a cat and that's what she heard.

Putting her face close to the door she called through "hey you in there?" she paused slightly, breathing in through her nose, ignoring the slight smell of mould and damp coming from the door in front of her. "I have your post, I'm leaving it here."

Stopping again she looked down at the door.

Strange.

No mailbox.

Getting down on all floors, thanking whatever good sense she had to wear trousers, she slipped the small bundle of letters under the crack in the bottom of the door.

Standing upright again and brushing herself down she moved closer to the door again. She had no idea what made her even do this, there was nobody inside of this house, she was talking to herself "If you have my letters then drop them by."

She shook her head a final time, turning her back to the door and picking a loose bit of lint off of her shirt she began to walk away.

"Bye Brittany."


End file.
